Pain Control for Rib Fractures Richard A. Malthaner MD MSc FRCSC FACS Professor Division of Thoracic Surgery LHSC Trauma Program

No Conflict of Interest

Rib Fracture Most common thoracic injury Increase morbidity and mortality Pulmonary function is compromised Acute pain control is critical

Principles Inadequate pain control Inability to cough and breath deeply Sputum retention Atelectasis Reduction in FRC Compromised lung compliance Ventilation-perfusion mismatch Hypoxemia Respiratory failure

Principle Resuscitation precedes pain relief Multimodal analgesia is recommended

Options Medication Oral IV Regional analgesia Topical Intercostal nerve block Intrapleural Paravertebral block Epidural Surgical Fixation

First Aid Analgesia Deep breathing and coughing Avoid taping / bandaging / splinting

Medication Acetaminophen NSAID Ketorolac, ibuprofen, voltaren, tramadol Opioids Morphine, fentanyl, codeine, PCA Gabapentin Tricyclics

IV Narcotics Advantages Rapid onset Less painful than IM & SC Disadvantages Respiratory depression RN certification Must wean Peaks and troughs

PCA Advantages Better than IV bolus Continuous baseline Patient controlled Disadvantages Patient must comprehend Machine errors Family interference Weaning Sedation

Lidocaine 5% patch Mechanism Penetrates the skin Binds sodium channels Block influx sodium Reduce abnormal ectopic discharges produced by damaged nerves

Randomized, double-blind, placebo- controlled trial using lidocaine patch 5% in traumatic rib fractures. Ingalls NK, Horton ZA, Bettendorf M, Frye I, Rosdrigues C J Am Coll Surg Feb;210(2):205-9 Michigan State University/Grand Rapids Medical Education and Research Center, Grand Rapids, MI, USA.

p = 0.88 Pain Assessment and Narcotic Utilization

Outcome Comparison Lidocaine groupPlacebo group Pulmonary complications # 72.7% (24/33)72% (18/25)P = 0.95 Length of Stay # P = 0.28 # Mean + SEM * Median (interquartile range)

Conclusions Lidocaine patches do not decrease narcotic pain medication use No difference in pain scores pulmonary complications length of stay Should not be routinely used

Paravertebral Block Advantages Avoids sedation and ventilation Allows neuro assessment Can spare lumbar and sacral nerves Simple Less hypotension Disadvantages Vascular puncture Pneumothorax Inadvertent epidural anesthesia Spread to the opposite site Horner’s Expertise

Intercostal Nerve Block Advantages Improved PFTs Disadvantages Multiple injections Painful Time consuming Local anesthetic toxicity Difficult for upper ribs Pneumothorax

Intrapleural Advantages Less complications Hypotension Urinary retention Lower extremity paresthesia Disadvantages Loss of anesthetics via chest tube Tension pneumothorax if tube is clamped Impaired diffusion if hemothorax Posture-dependent

Epidural Advantages Improved PFTs Reduced airway resistance Improved breathing Improved immune response Disadvantages Technically difficult May mask abdominal pathology Hypotension Urinary retention Epidural hematoma Paralysis

Thoracic Epidural Ullman DA Et Al. Reg Anesth 1989; 14(1):43 RCT n=28 %

Surgical Fixation > 4 segment flail Intubated “Stove in” chest Thoracotomy for other indications Don’t: Severe head injury Other life threatening injuries

Take Home Pain control

CHEST is BEST ™